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COLUMBIA, Mo. (Aug. 31, 2026) – The Center for Rural Energy Security (CRES) will host a news conference and panel discussion to release its inaugural policy research paper, “Powering Rural Prosperity: The Local Economic Impact of Utility-Scale Wind and Solar Developments,” on Thursday, Sept. 3.
The study, authored by CRES-affiliated faculty Adrienne Ohler, associate professor; Austin Landini, a Center-affiliated research consultant; and Michael Sykuta, CRES director and associate professor, is the first policy research paper published by the Center, a multidisciplinary unit spanning Mizzou’s College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources; College of Arts and Science; and College of Engineering. Established in 2025, CRES is the first-of-its kind think tank in the U.S., focusing on the implications of federal and state energy policies and technological innovation for rural America.
WHAT: Release of first policy research paper by the Center for Rural Energy
Security (CRES), including a panel discussion and Q&A with state energy,
agriculture and academic leaders
WHEN: 10 a.m.,Thursday, Sept. 3
WHERE: Reynolds Journalism Institute
Lambert Room (200-A)
University of Missouri
401 S. Ninth St.
Columbia, Mo. 65211
WHO: Mike Sykuta, CRES Director & Associate Professor of Applied Economics
Cooper Drury, Dean, MU College of Arts and Science
Garrett Hawkins, President, Missouri Farm Bureau
Kurt Schaefer, Director, Missouri Department of Natural Resources
Adrienne Ohler, Associate Professor of Applied Economics, MU
Jana Rose Schleis, Technology Reporter, KBIA radio
Release of the paper will include a panel discussion, with interview opportunities for members of the media. Media members who plan to attend should contact John Fougere at (573)882-7725 or fougerej@missouri.edu.
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About CRES
The Center for Rural Energy Security (CRES) is the first-of-its-kind energy policy think tank in the U.S. that focuses specifically on understanding the implications of federal and state energy policies and technology innovation for rural America. Housed at the University of Missouri, CRES achieves its mission through objective, unbiased, policy-based research; producing timely policy reports, white papers and op-eds; authoring scholarly academic studies; facilitating contracted research projects for private stakeholders and government agencies; and performing grant- and philanthropy-funded research.